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Rudy Gay and DeMar DeRozan on the trade block?

Toronto Raptors forward Rudy Gay (22) and guard DeMar DeRozan (10) in the dying seconds of the Raptors loss to the Memphis Grizzlies in NBA action in Toronto on Wednesday February 20, 2013.Photo: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

Now ESPN’s Chad Ford is reporting that the Raptors are looking to move both Gay and DeRozan.

The Raptors have been trying to find new homes for both Gay and DeRozan in an attempt to move into the top five on the Tank Rank. GM Masai Ujiri knows this team’s chances of making the playoffs are slim and they need to cut payroll, but the market for players like Gay and DeRozan isn’t what it used to be.

The DeRozan bit conflicts with what Amico has reported. It doesn’t make sense to trade DeRozan this season because he is still has room left to grow as a player and the wouldn’t be selling him at his highest value. He has already shown a lot of improvement in the preseason and might be the team’s most improved player this season. It’s better in the long-term for DeRozan to continue to improve his market value so the Raptors can get a significant piece in return.

The Gay talk, however, seems to be consistent with recent rumours. Sources in Bruce Arthur’s recent column said Ujiri has discussed trades involving Gay. Now this isn’t major news since the Detroit Pistons were reportedly interested in Gay this past summer. They offered the expiring contracts of Charlie Villanueva and Rodney Stuckey, hoping to grab Gay on the cheap, but Ujiri had other plans. The Pistons eventually settled on Josh Smith to fill their small forward position.

If the Ujiri were to go into full tank mode, it shouldn’t surprise anyone because Andrew Wiggins, the expected top prize of the 2014 NBA Draft, would like to play for his hometown Raptor squad.

To add more fuel to the tank, TSN/TSN 2 (owned by Bell Media, also the part owner of MLSE) has picked up all of Andrew Wiggins’ games with the Kansas Jayhawks this season.

Here is a little preview of what Wiggins will bring to the Jayhawks next season, and to the Raptors if their potential tank goes well.